The Andheri Regional Transport Office confiscated a car that belongs to the owner of a music company in the city for evading tax of Rs40 lakh, by registering it in Pondicherry

The Andheri Regional Transport Office (RTO) confiscated a car that belongs to the owner of a music company in the city for evading tax of Rs40 lakh, by registering it outside the state.

The car, a Mercedes Mayback, priced at approximately Rs2 crore, was registered in Pondicherry, according to sources from the RTO. It was confiscated by flying squad.

The transport commissioner’s office has directed all RTOs to conduct a check on high-end and imported vehicles plying in the state that have been registered outside Maharashtra to save tax.

In Maharashtra, the tax to registering an imported vehicle is above 20%, but the same is less than 10% in many states like Chandigarh, Pondicherry, Nagaland and others.

The motor vehicle department, led by transport commissioner Praveen Gedam, has taken action against around 450 such vehicles across the state since January. According to RTO sources, majority of them plied on the city streets regularly.

This is not the first time that the RTO has taken such an action against the cars of celebrities. When contacted, Govind Saindane, regional transport officer at Andheri RTO, confirmed about the detention of the car.